Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer and Bulgarian President Rumen Radev have reportedly agreed on a visit by Nehammer and his Interior Minister Gerhard Karner to the Bulgarian border on Jan. 23, APA reports.
On New Year’s Day, Karl Nehammer and Rumen Radev posted pictures of a joint meeting, with both leaders emphasizing on their social media accounts “good cooperation” and a common desire to deepen the partnership between the countries .
The position of Austria with which the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen area was rejected has provoked a wide debate at European level and multiple criticisms in both countries, Chancellor Nehammer is currently interested in fixing the situation, at least in relations with Bulgaria, reports the newspaper “Die Presse”, according to news.ro
The publication mentions that the President of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev, was Nehammer’s guest at the New Year’s concert in Vienna, images of the event were shared by the two officials and on their social media accounts.
Currently, Chancellor Nehammer wants to support Bulgaria to get more help from the EU for the protection of external borders. This would imply on the one hand European funding for the construction of a barrier between Bulgaria and Turkey and, on the other hand, an increase in Frontex’s capabilities in this region, says the APA agency.
And the president of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev, said Sunday, after meeting with Nehammer, that he thanked him for the invitation to the concert in Vienna. Radev took up Nehammer’s speech, stating that it is not in Europe’s interest for thousands of illegal migrants to reach EU member states.
“Surveillance of the EU’s external borders is a commitment of all Member States and is essential to combat illegal immigration. The increase in migratory pressure towards Europe affects all countries and requires even closer cooperation, as well as specific technical and financial support. It is not in Europe’s interest that thousands of illegal migrants enter EU Member States, which also represents a major security problem for the Union. I appreciate the Federal Chancellor of Austria, Karl Nehammer, for the common position and the expressed desire to deepen the partnership between Bulgaria and Austria, as well as for the invitation to participate in the New Year’s concert of the Vienna Philharmonic,” wrote Rumen Radev on his Facebook account.
